He shot ANPI activists with an airsoft weapon and was sentenced to four months
The preliminary hearing judge reclassified the crime as battery, acquitting the accused of illegal possession of weapons
Quick Look
- Last April 25, Eitan Bondì, a 22-year-old from the Roman Jewish community, fired a soft air gun at Anpi militants during a demonstration in Schuster Park in Rome, wounding two of them.
- The preliminary hearing judge sentenced him to 4 months with an abbreviated sentence, reclassifying the crime as battery and absolving him of illegal possession of weapons.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The incident occurred on April 25, Liberation Day, during a demonstration in Schuster Park in Rome. The accused, belonging to the Roman Jewish community, fired a soft air gun towards Anpi militants, wounding a man and a woman who were wearing the association's handkerchief. The investigations were conducted by Digos.
Last April 25th he left the house carrying a soft air gun with him. With the scooter he reached the Schuster Park area in Rome, where a demonstration was taking place on the occasion of the Liberation and from a distance of a few meters he fired in the direction of some Anpi militants, wounding two of them. For this reason, Eitan Bondì, a 22-year-old belonging to the Roman Jewish community, was sentenced to 4 months by the preliminary judge, at the end of an abbreviated trial. The judge reclassified the contested crime, dropping the charge of attempted aggravated assault and recognizing the less serious charge of battery. Bondì was also acquitted of the charge of illegal possession of weapons.
According to what was reconstructed by the investigators, the young man injured a man and a woman who were wearing the handkerchief of the National Association of Partisans of Italy around their necks. Bondì ended up in prison on attempted murder charges. During the validation hearing, before the investigating judge, the boy - who was present today in Piazzale Clodio - availed himself of the right not to answer, however choosing to make spontaneous statements before the judge. On that occasion Bondì apologized for what had happened, taking responsibility for the gesture and distancing himself from any political or ideological matrix. "I take responsibility for this deplorable gesture. I am ashamed of what I have done and I express solidarity towards the injured people and towards those who felt offended by my gesture", stated the young man in the Regina Coeli prison, defended by the lawyers Cesare Gai and Gianluca Tognozzi.
In the order with which the judge ordered house arrest he described the incident as a "completely irrational" gesture, excluding the presence of a substantial motive behind the contested action. Bondì, who later returned free, also denied any connection with the Jewish Brigade. "I want to specify that I am not part of any group. There are no political or ideological motives behind my gesture: I have no connection with the Jewish Brigade and I have never claimed responsibility for it", he declared before the judge. The investigations were conducted by Digos who, during a house search, found three rifles, several pistols and some knives in the possession of the young man, holder of a weapons license for sporting use.
Open Questions
- What were the exact reasons for the gesture, in addition to the definition of 'completely irrational' given by the judge?
- What disciplinary or administrative consequences will follow for the defendant's possession of weapons for sporting use?
- Did the two injured people suffer permanent physical consequences?
